A Mask of Indifference
by darkwoodsdreamer
Summary: Viktor has been acting strange lately, and Charlie can't figure out why. Written for what u can make of it challenge. CW/VK. Post final battle. Rated T because I'm paranoid.


**So this is my last random prompt until I those my other two finished, I promise! After that I will be starting a story called GSA for Harry Potter, so watch out for that! This was written for the What You Can Make of it Challenge by VivusEtIterium. Enjoy and remember to review!**

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><p>Charlie sat on his couch, staring at a picture frame on the coffee table in front of him, his third bottle of firewiskey in his hand. He was starting to feel a bit drunk, but he didn't mind. In fact, he was glad. He needed to get drunk, needed to let the alcohol's numbing effects wash over him and just forget today. He put the bottle to his mouth and took another swig, relishing in the burning sensation in the back of his throat when he swallowed. He looked back at the picture but decided that he couldn't look at it anymore. Memories were in this photo, memories he didn't want to deal with. As the photo Viktor leaned over to kiss the photo Charlie on the cheek, the real Charlie tipped the photo over so he didn't have to watch. It was too painful to see what he used to have, the happiness he had once known, only hours after he had lost it all forever. It wasn't his fault though, he tried to convince himself as he took another swig of firewiskey. He wasn't the reason the relationship had fallen through. It was Viktor. Viktor, who couldn't understand what he was going through after losing his little brother to the war. Viktor, who hadn't been there to comfort him when he was sure his father was dead. And now it was Viktor again, not able to act himself and just be the man Charlie fell in love with all those years ago, even when it was just the two of them.<p>

Charlie knew he couldn't avoid it anymore. He felt the memories rising to the surface, trying to burst through the drunk bubble he had worked so hard to contain them in. He knew that if he didn't relieve it all now it would just plague him in his dreams even worse than it would now. He leaned back and closed his eyes, allowed the events of the day to wash over him...

"So, are we going to that Chinese Muggle place or the Leaky Cauldron?" Charlie asked as he walked down the street with his long-time boyfriend, Viktor Krum. He glanced at him out of the corner of his eye, looking for any sort of response. Ever since the fall of Lord Voldemort, Viktor had been acting oddly. At first, he hadn't noticed because he was so busy grieving over his brothers death that the only time they spent together was long after everyone else had gone to bed in his room, Viktor holding him and close and stroking his head and back as he sobbed silently into his shoulder. After he had gotten ahold of himself enough that he could look at Fred's picture without breaking down into tears, they had picked up life where they had left off, although something had changed. Viktor was different, more distant and rarely talking.

"I don't mind. Verever you vould like." he responded in his Bulgarian accent. This might have made Charlie smile at one point, but he only frowned slightly now. He wanted Viktor to show some sort of personality, but he had been less and less lately.

"Do you mind Chinese, then?" he asked. Viktor shook his head and they turned onto a side street, walking away from the Leaky Cauldron and instead to a different part of town.

They walked in silence for a little while, Charlie trying to think up different ways to make Viktor show some taste or personality or life, at least. He wondered of the war had affected his so badly that now he couldn't even smile. There were people who were still afraid to say Voldemort's name, even though it was no longer Taboo, and the Death Eaters not yet caught were wrecking havoc on wizards and Muggles alike. Could it be that he had just been traumatized by the war and was slipping into a depression because of it? Charlie decided to run with this idea, hoping he was wrong because he didn't wish bad things for Viktor at the same time he prayed he was right so that he would at least know what to do to help Viktor become himself again. He had to make Viktor think this was on his terms, though, or Charlie knew from experience that he would close up like a clam.

"You know you can tell me anything, don't you?" Viktor looked up, a bit startled by the red head's words, but not speaking. He stayed silent for a long moment.

"I know that." he said. Charlie wanted to ask why he didn't tell him what the matter was then, but held himself back. Interrogating him wasn't going to get him anywhere. Instead, he shrugged and looked ahead.

"Alright, I just thought I'd let you know." he said. Viktor looked slightly confused, but shook his head and looked down at his feet again. Charlie gave this a few seconds to sink in, hoping that after a minute he would have figured out that he knew something was wrong and just told him what was on his mind. Instead, Viktor suddenly stopped. Charlie walked on a few steps before he realized and stopped himself, turning to face him. "Something wrong?" he asked, outside calm and composed but the inside praying that he was about to confide in him. He was quite a bit shocked when Viktor responded with;

"You are trying to meddle." Charlie could only look at him, confusion in every feature.

"Meddle? I'm trying to let you know that I'm here for you and I'm trying to go get some food, but I'm not trying to meddle." he responded. Was this the problem? Viktor thought he was trying to meddle with his life? He felt his heart sink at the mistrust. Viktor shook his head.

"No, you are meddling. You are trying to make me tell you something I do not vant me to talk about." Charlie wasn't entirely sure how to respond. How was he supposed to respond to something like that? Boyfriends, he thought irritably, should come with instruction manuals.

"Look, whatever it is, you don't have to tell me if you don't want to. I have to admit, I thought you would know you could trust me with anything, but you don't have to tell me anything you don't want to." he tried. This didn't seem to have been the most comforting thing he could have said. Viktor's head snapped up, a look of anger in his eye.

"Right then! You tried to make me feel guilty about not telling you." he said a bit louder. Charlie was glad to see that he still had some emotion, but this had not been the emotion he was looking for. "Why do vant to know so bad?" Charlie could have pulled his hair out in frustration. The man apparently didn't know there was such a thing as trust anymore. He remembered back before the day Voldemort had died and how he had been open and told him about his life and even smiled, but there was none of that now. Where he used to have love and acceptance in his heart that had somehow survived Durmstrang, there was now dishonesty and mistrust. He hated it.

"I only want you to be happy, Viktor! Is that so hard to believe?"

"Yes, actually." he retorted, and Charlie flinched. "You act as though everything is alright again ven it is obviously not." Charlie was again unsure how to respond. Viktor really didn't believe that he had his best interests at heart? This hurt him, but he was much more angry than upset and responded;

"What about you? You haven't been yourself ever since Voldemort died! You've been hiding behind a mask of indifference!" Viktor looked slightly affronted.

"Even if that vere true, vat do you care?" he asked. Charlie could have punched him now.

"What do you mean what do I care?" he shouted at him. "Of course I care. You've hid behind a mask for so long you forgot who you were underneath it! You've changed, Viktor. I just want to know why. Is that too much to ask?" Both Viktor and him were glowering at each other by now. Viktor drew in a long breath before turning on his heel.

"You don't understand. You can't understand. I can't do this anymore." he said evenly. He walked away, leaving Charlie stunned and chalk-white on the sidewalk. "Goodbye, Veasley." he called over his shoulder without a backwards glance.

And now he was gone. Charlie still didn't know what was wrong with Viktor or why he had suddenly broken up with him, but he knew that it was too painful to deal with right now. Charlie still loved him and wanted things to be alright for him, but Viktor didn't trust him anymore and it was painful to know that he didn't. What had he done that had brought this on? Had he said something really horrible to him without realizing it? He wished he could apologize, but Viktor refused to pick up the phone. He had severed all his ties and he couldn't understand why. But it had happened, and now be needed to move on. He needed to accept that he no longer had Viktor and that he wasn't likely to ever come back. So as a single tear rolled down his cheek, he got up and slid the picture into the bottom desk drawer and locked it. This part of his life was over, and he was looking forward to the new beginning, trying hard to forget the past.


End file.
